United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Stock Price Down 0.7%

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) fell 0.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $145.92 and last traded at $146.02. 439,706 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 4,140,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $147.09.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UPS has been the topic of several analyst reports. TheStreet upgraded United Parcel Service from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $178.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Argus cut shares of United Parcel Service from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $165.23.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.5 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $149.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $150.53. The company has a market capitalization of $126.00 billion, a PE ratio of 21.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 37.42%. The business had revenue of $21.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.23 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.41%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is 94.49%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service by 360.3% during the first quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 113,424 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $16,858,000 after purchasing an additional 88,784 shares in the last quarter. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC now owns 41,473 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,164,000 after buying an additional 959 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 28,560 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,245,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 7.5% in the first quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 2,471 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $367,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.4% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 779,576 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $115,869,000 after acquiring an additional 10,386 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Company Profile

United Parcel Service, Inc, a package delivery company, provides transportation and delivery, distribution, contract logistics, ocean freight, airfreight, customs brokerage, and insurance services. It operates through two segments, U.S. Domestic Package and International Package. The U.S. Domestic Package segment offers time-definite delivery of express letters, documents, small packages, and palletized freight through air and ground services in the United States.